


Fetch

by idreamofjily



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Competitive, F/M, Fralice, Fun, Hide and Seek, James Potter - Freeform, Lily Evans - Freeform, Marauders, Marauders era, Oh Merlin it's ridiculous but fun, Pass Lily around like a baton, Really just a big game of who's it, Sirius Black & James Potter Friendship, The more you read the better it gets, baton, jily, light hearted
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-23
Updated: 2018-02-07
Packaged: 2019-03-08 12:18:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13458105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/idreamofjily/pseuds/idreamofjily
Summary: Every year the Marauders play a massive game of Fetch. The object of the game: hide a with reluctant Lily Evans for as long as possible. Win at all costs. Starts at the end of sixth year through to seventh. Fun and a little bit ridiculous. Once you get past the first two chapters it gets good, I promise. James/Lily Sirius/Marlene Frank/Alice.





	1. Late Night Rendezvous

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Thanks a bunch for clicking on my story. I hope you enjoy it. It will be a short multi fic, that will be full of Marauder shenanigans and fun. Plus some James/Lily, Frank/Alice and Sirius/Marlene. The first few chapters are a bit rough because I was still getting the hang of some things. xxx

On Friday the ninth of April, Lily Evans fell asleep with her shoes besides the bed. It wasn’t because she was planning on a midnight stroll through the dark halls of Hogwarts, but rather because she knew that at some point throughout the next two weeks of the Easter holidays, she would be unceremoniously dragged out of the comfort of her bed. The reason for this came in the form of four over-excited boys who enjoyed tormenting her. So Lily wasn’t overly surprised when she woke up early Sunday morning to see James Potter hovering over her bed, sporting terribly messy bed hair and a tired grin.

‘Potter?’ She asked thickly as she blearily peered up at the enthusiastic boy on the broom above her. She found she was too tired to be self-conscious of her own bedhead, especially since James was unconcerned with his. ‘What are you—oh! Is it time?’

‘You know it Evans,’ James whispered back, reminding her of her roommates sleeping in the other beds. ‘Now hurry up and get that perky little ass downstairs so we can get this over with and go back to sleep.’

Lily tiredly flipped him off before sitting up to slip on her shoes and grabbed her oversized jumper off the end of her bed. When she was ready Potter gestured for her to lead the way and she walked down the stair with James flying silently behind her. Entering the common room she saw the three other boys squished onto the couch in front of the fire, facing a single armchair. 

‘Well lads,’ said James flying over to them, ‘the guest of honour is here, so I say we get started with. The sooner we get it over with, the sooner I can go back to bed.’ He smoothly dismounted the broom and jumped onto the small couch, wedging himself between Remus and a very uncomfortable looking Peter who was pushed up against the side of the couch. 

‘Yes Lilykins, come, sit and get excited,’ said Sirius, enthusiastically gesturing to the chair opposite them. Out of all the boys, he seemed the most awake, grinning at Lily like a madman. She rolled her eyes and sat in the chair, feeling completely unimpressed with the three am wake up call. 

‘Right,’ started Sirius, ‘as you know Lily, we are gathered here to organise the annual game of Fetch. Remus the paper please.’

‘I don’t have it.’

‘What do you mean you don’t have it? I told you to bring it down.’

‘Yes and I thought I did, but as you can see, it’s not here.’

‘Well where is it?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘Well-‘

‘If you two are quite done bickering like an old married couple, then you might want to check under your asses, I think I can see some paper underneath Peter,’ said Lily exasperated with the knobs sitting across from her. Peter blushed and jumped up quickly, jostling James who had been sleeping on Remus’ shoulder. Muttering an apology, Peter quickly grabbed the parchment that had been shoved down the side of the couch and handed it to Sirius.

‘Oh,’ said Sirius. ‘There it is.’ 

‘Yes, sounds like someone owes me an ap-‘

‘Okay!’ said Lily, interrupting the impending argument. ‘Can we get on with this? I’d like to get some sleep in the next century.’

‘I second Evans’ statement; hurry the fuck up,’ said James sleepily as he slouched on the couch with his head in his hands. Lily glared at James yet didn’t comment on his filthy mouth. 

Sirius cleared his throat and unscrolled the parchment. ‘Right. So yeah, we’re here to plan Fetch. As stated in the contract “Fetch is a game whereby the objective of the four players is to have possession of the baton for the longest amount of time. Only one player is able to possess said baton at any time. The game must be played within the Easter holidays, and the beginning of said game, as well as the running time, is monitored by a game keeper and is unknown to the players. Players are awarded sixty points for every hour spent with the baton, and one hundred and fifty points if they are in possession of the baton when the game ends. Essentially it is a game of hide and seek, whereby whoever hides with the baton the longest, wins.” And that my lads and lady, is Fetch,’ he ended with a dramatic flourish. 

There was a pregnant pause before Remus sat forward, knocking James’ arm, whose head once again fell and woke him up. ‘Sirius,’ started Remus. ‘You do realise that we’ve played this game for four years right? Don’t you think we already know the rules?’

‘Well yes but-‘

‘Also, could we please stop referring to me as the baton?’ interrupted Lily, slightly offended.

‘But that’s what you are!’ protested Sirius. 

‘It makes me sound like an inanimate object.’

‘Well if the shoe fits,’ Sirius quipped, sending Lily his small, infuriating smirk. Before she could reply, James spoke up.

‘For Merlin’s sake!’ growled James, ‘I’m not sure if you’re doing this just because you want to torture me, but I would really like to get some sleep tonight, so if you could shut your cakeholes and get on with it, that would be fantastic.’

‘Well someone isn’t a morning person,’ grumbled Lily. 

‘That’s because it’s three-fucking-thirty in the morning and someone won’t let us do this in the boys’ dormitory,’ bit back James.

‘Well excuse me for not wanting to spend time in that filth-ridden-‘

‘Guys!’ Remus shouted, suddenly on his feet. ‘Arguing is not going to get this over with any faster. James, we get that you’re tired, we all are. Suck it up. Lily, stop complaining. Like James said, the sooner we get this done the better.’ Having said his bit, Remus sat back down, ignoring the glares that he was receiving from James and Lily. 

‘I don’t see why we have to do this in the first place,’ piped up Peter.

‘Because it’s tradition Pete, we’ve done it like this every year,’ replied Sirius, who was not at all impressed with the lack of enthusiasm. 

‘Every year except the first one, when you ambushed me,’ said Lily, still holding a grudge for that night.

‘Oh right, I forgot about that one.’

‘Lucky you,’ replied Lily coolly as she remembered how she’d been unwillingly dragged around the castle in her second year. 

‘Right, ah well, moving on. Pete do you want to give us the tally?’ Sirius asked, avoiding Lily’s stink eye and handing the worn scroll to Peter.

‘Oh yeah, sure. Just… hang on,’ he nervously fiddled with the parchment. ‘Oh right, there it is. Okay, the tally stands as; myself with zero games-‘

‘Good effort there Wormy,’ mumbled James.

‘Oh piss off Prongs. So I’m on zero, Remus and James, you both have one game each. And our current leader is Sirius, with two games,’ he said, his voice lacking any enthusiasm at Sirius’ current lead. 

‘Whoop whoop! Damn right bitches, Sirius Black is smoking your arses!’ Lily watched in amusement as Sirius jumped up and started enthusiastically waving his bum in front of his unfortunate friends. 

‘Oh sod off Padfoot,’ said Remus with a laugh before shoving him back on the couch. ‘It’s only by one game, and I’m pretty sure you cheated last year.’

‘I did not! There was no rule that said I wasn’t allowed to hide in the room of requirement,’ Sirius argued.

‘That’s because we didn’t know the room existed until then,’ reminded Remus, rolling his eyes, but his small grin showed that he wasn’t really annoyed. 

‘Oh hush, you’re just mad because you didn’t think of it yourself.’ 

‘Speaking of rules, we’ve got to read out the new ones. Moony, wanna take it away?’ asked Peter, handing the scroll to Remus.

‘Alright. Just the usual rules; no intentionally seriously hurting or maiming anyone, including the baton and other students. No leaving school grounds, no conspiring with one another to win, no damaging the school and no bribing the game keeper to reveal information about the time frame. Lily must be kept comfortable; pretty much if she needs something, you get it for her. Every other rule pretty much falls under all that. If you want to know more, look at the parchment yourself. Right! New rules; no going into the room of requirement, no dressing up house elves – no matter how willing they are – and no hiding in Dumbledore’s office, and that goes for you too Sirius,’ said Remus, giving the boy in question a pointed look. 

‘Please, like I’ll do that again, I had to clean Myrtle’s toilets without magic for detention!’ Sirius shuddered at the memory. ‘She kept trying to chat me up too, I swear.’ 

‘Serves you right,’ snorted Remus. ‘Now, Lily, before you go any further, we need you to solemnly swear that any marauder secrets you currently know and may find out will be kept secret.’

‘Seriously? I do this every year, and I’ve never told a soul about the map, the cloak or your furry little problem Remus,’ huffed Lily, slightly offended that they still didn’t trust her, despite her willingly going along with the whole ridiculous game every year. 

‘Sorry Lilykins,’ said Sirius. ‘We just have to absolutely sure.’

‘Fine. I solemnly swear that I will not reveal any marauder secrets. I also solemnly swear to obey all rules of Fetch.’ Lily rolled her eyes as she swore the oath, completely underwhelmed by how serious the boys all took their secrets.

‘Fantastic. Now one more thing, then we can all go back to bed.’

‘Thank Merlin,’ muttered Peter. Lily looked over at him to see that James had nodded off on his shoulder and appeared to be drooling on Peter’s pyjama shirt. 

‘Okay,’ began Sirius. ‘As per usual, every gets one object to help them in the game. Peter, since you lost in the last game, you get to choose first.’

‘Oh right. Umm… I’ll take the cloak thanks.’ 

“Ah,’ said Sirius. ‘I wanted the cloak you little rat, Pete.’ If Lily had of been more awake, she would have wondered why the three boys (minus James who was still asleep) were giggling at what Sirius said. ‘Anyways, Remus. You’re next. What do you want?’

‘I’ll take the polyjuice potion,’ replied Remus, giving a sneaky smile.

‘Oh good choice Moony. So that must mean it’s James next,’ he looked over to the sleeping boy, pulling a face when he saw the pool of drool on Peter’s shoulder. ‘James! Hey!’ He shook his arm roughly, waking him.

‘What the fuck do you want Padfoot?’ James growled, sitting up and wiping his chin with as much dignity as possible. Next to him Peter attempted to peel his wet shirt away from his skin.

‘Wow and I thought Remus was the beast,’ said Lily sarcastically.

‘Oh he is,’ replied Sirius. ‘But James is the beast in bed,’ he said, giving an over exaggerated wink to Lily. She rolled her eyes in return, not bothering to dignify that statement with a reply. ‘Anyway, James, it’s your turn to pick your item. Two way mirrors or magical knife?’ 

‘Mirrors,’ mumbled James, his eyes closed again. 

‘Fantastic. Are we done now?’ asked Sirius, clearly wanting the little ceremony to be over.

‘I think so!’ Remus jumped up. ‘Oh wait, I almost forgot.’ He fished around in his pocket before producing four brightly coloured bracelets. ‘As always, don’t lose these. They will heat up at the beginning of the game and whenever the baton…‘ he glanced at Lily, ‘- passes hands. It will grow cold to signal the end of Fetch. I suggest you put them on now as the game could start at any time within the next week.’

‘Are we done now?’ asked Peter sleepily.

‘I think so.’ 

‘Thank fuck,’ said James, standing up abruptly and stretching, not caring that half his stomach muscles were showing as he did so. Not that Lily was looking. He grabbed his broom and stalked up to the sixths years’ dormitory without looking back. 

‘Not really a morning person is he?’ snorted Lily as she too got up and stretched before walking towards the dormitory stairs. 

‘Mmm,’ groaned Sirius, slowly getting up from the couch. ‘He probably won’t even remember this by tomorrow.’

‘Ha, have fun with that. Well, this has been fun boys – well not really – but I’m gonna hit the sack and try to get a few more hours sleep. Goodnight.’ She waved to them absentmindedly.

‘Want some company?’ grinned Sirius. Lily laughed and flipped him off, her thoughts already on her warm four poster bed upstairs.


	2. Milky Chance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for checking out my story. It begins towards the end of sixth year and will jump to the seventh year for the last game of Fetch. I want this to be light-hearted and fun. Also there won’t be heaps of Snape in this story – he will be in it, but not a major character.   
> Anyway, please tell me what you think!   
> Disclaimer: Any characters you recognise belong to the wonderful J.K Rowling, as does the beautiful wizarding world of Harry Potter.

Breakfast was an excitable event the next morning in the great hall. Students were chatting about the news; Fetch was going to start any time within the next week. Lily had been badgered all morning by students asking her about the game and was only half listening to Ralph, the excited third year Ravenclaw who sat next to her as she pushed around the scrambled eggs on her plate. 

‘So yeah, my money is on Sirius this year – obviously since I’m on his team – because I just think he’s the most daring of the four, don’t you think? No doubt he will hide you somewhere risky, like that time you guys hid on the roof of the Gryffindor tower! Man that would have been scary. Anyway, I’m writing an entry for the school paper and I was wondering if you can answer a few questions? Like where do you think -?’ 

Lily was just contemplating going back to bed and calling it a day when she spotted Mary Macdonald eating further down the table. ‘Ralph,’ she said, cutting him off halfway through his lengthy description of Sirius’ hair. ‘I’m really sorry, but I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later alright?’ She got up and gave him an absentminded smile before moving towards Marlene.

‘But wait! Lily! What about the interview? For the paper?’ Ralph called after her. She sent him a small wave before collapsing into the seat next to Mary.

‘Ugh Mary, can this day be over already?’ groaned Lily, slumping forward onto the table with her head on her arms. 

Mary snorted. ‘Why?’ she asked Lily before looking in dismay at her cereal bowl, which now contained a rather large chunk of Lily’s auburn hair floating around in it. ‘You’re hair’s in my cereal again Lils.’

‘Great,’ said Lily sarcastically as she sat up and examined her milk soaked hair. ‘Add it to the list of terrible things about this morning.’

‘Oh surely it can’t be that bad, you’re a celebrity at the moment!’ said Mary, trying to bolster her spirits. ‘And I saw you talking to Ralph before, he’s kinder cute and I think he’s sweet on you.’

‘Mary he’s thirteen!’ Lily looked at her in equal parts amusement and disgust, to which Mary simply shrugged. ‘I’m pretty sure that’s against the law or something. Besides he’s only cute if you’re into bad cowlicks and acne. Anyway, I think he’s sweet on Black, not me. I just had to sit through a ten minute description of his ‘luscious locks,’ Lily gagged as Mary laughed into her pumpkin juice, coughing as the juice went down the wrong way.

‘Talking about me ladies?’ came a smooth voice as Sirius slipped into the seat next to Lily, who was patting Mary on the back. ‘I assume you were, since you were talking about luscious locks.’

‘No actually, we were talking about Potter,’ croaked Mary, recovered enough to send Sirius a cheeky grin, which was ruined only slightly by her watering eyes.

‘Ah you wound me Macdonald,’ said Sirius, dramatically placing a hand over his wounded heart. ‘I always knew you liked James’ hair better. I guess it just goes to show what bad taste you have. Speaking of bad hair, I must say Lily, that milky hair really isn’t doing you any favours.’ 

‘Oh piss off Black,’ said Lily as she pulled out her wand and performed a quick drying spell. ‘What do you want anyway? You usually sleep well passed breakfast in the holidays.’

‘Alright, you got me; I didn’t come here just to enjoy the presence of your company, lovely though it may be. I was wondering if either of you have seen Prewett this morning?’ asked Sirius.

‘Alice? No we haven’t see her. Why?’

‘Bugger,’ muttered Sirius. ‘We can’t find Frank either, they must be canoodling somewhere. We need to sort some things out with Frank, considering he’s the game keeper and all.’

‘Oh well check the back sitting area in the Library, that’s where they were last time. But I’d proceed with caution if I were you; there’s no telling what they’re up too,’ said Lily, blushing slightly as she knew from experience that interrupting those two could leave you scarred for life. 

‘Will do. Thank you, my lovelies,’ said Sirius standing up with a flourish. ‘Oh, and Lily? You missed a spot.’

Lily groaned in defeat and placed her head on the table, revealing the missed chunk of milk soaked hair. 

 

Alice Prewett wasn’t stupid. She knew that during the next few days, she would see very little of her boyfriend due to his ‘gamekeeper’ status. That was why when she decided to get up with the birds and read in the library, she dragged Frank out of his bed to come with her. It’s not that she minded the fact that he was so involved with Fetch, it was just that when the game was on, he was constantly badgered and harassed, making any hopes of time alone impossible. Not that he was much company now, Alice thought as she looked down from her book to the boy sleeping peacefully in her lap. He was eagle spread across the couch, his limbs dangling everywhere. Alice smiled softly at the goofball, watching him breathe in and out evenly. 

‘You’re staring. S’creepy,’ Frank mumbled. Alice laughed and ran her fingers through his hair as he peered up at her. 

‘I’m only staring because you were drooling,’ she teased.

‘What?!’ said Frank, sitting up abruptly and knocking Alice’s book out of her hands. ‘Oh, sorry. Was I really?’ he asked, wiping his mouth quickly. 

‘No you big goof, trust me, I wouldn’t let you use me as a pillow if you drooled.’

‘Oh please,’ Frank snaked an arm around her waist and pulled him to her side, causing her to shriek. ‘You love my drool. You loooove it,’ he sang. Before Alice could react, he leaned over and ran his tongue up the side of her face like a dog. Alice let out a squeal and tried to wiggle out of his arms.

‘Gross Frank! You’re disgusting, let me go,’ she giggled, trying to move away while went in for another lick. Alice was so caught up in trying to escape that she didn’t notice Sirius walk in.

‘Merlin, what the hell is going on?! Should I come back later?’ he asked, raising an eyebrows at their antics. ‘You’re lucky I found you before Madam Pince did.’ He watched in amusement as both Alice and Frank froze and looked up at him before they quickly let go of each other and smoothing out their clothes. 

‘Sirius! Sorry, we didn’t see you there,’ said Frank, going red when he realised that Sirius had just seen him licking his girlfriend. ‘What can we do for you?’ he asked, trying to ignore the giggles coming from Alice. 

‘Well you can keep your tongue in your mouth for one thing, no one wants to see that.’

‘I do,’ piped up Alice.

Sirius sent her a mildly disgusted look before continuing. ‘Anyway I just wanted to talk to you about the game and give you the map,’ he said, pulling out the worn bit of parchment. ‘I’m holding you both to your solemn oaths not to tell anyone about it,’ he glared at the both, trying to intimidate them into keeping the secret. 

‘Of course we won’t Sirius,’ said Alice, rolling her eyes. ‘You can trust us.’ 

‘Right. Yeah. Anyway just one other thing; say hypothetically speaking, if someone wanted to win a –completely unrelated – game, how long would they say, have to hide a baton?’

Frank rolled his eyes. ‘I’m not telling you how long the game is going for Sirius. You ask me every year and I give you the same answer I give the other three. You’ll have to wait and see.’ 

‘Ah well, worth a try isn’t it?’ Sirius grinned, giving them a quick wave before sauntering away. 

‘That boy,’ said Alice, amused at his antics. ‘So who do you think will win Frankie?’ 

‘I don’t know, but I’d watch out for James this year; he’s got quite the team lined up.’

 

James was having a terrible day. Not only was he suffering from sleep deprivation, but his right hand man was in the hospital wing with the flu. The Hufflepuff fourth year Reilly Bollard had sworn black and blue that he would be feeling better by that night, but one look at Madam Pomfrey was all James had needed to confirm his fears; Reilly wasn’t moving anywhere anytime soon. 

James swore under his breath. He needed Reilly dammit! Together they had determined the best tactics, hiding places and established alliances. He was the one that James was going to give one of the two way mirrors to. Now he needed to find a replacement, and fast. And his unfortunate target; Marlene McKinnon. 

James sat in the common room for over an hour waiting for the sixth year to leave the girls dormitory. It didn’t take him long after that to realise that she was thoroughly enjoying her holiday sleep-in and wasn’t coming down anytime soon. With a huff, James stood up and stalked up to his own dormitory, grabbing his broom and snitching his invisibility cloak of Peter’s bed. James threw the cloak over himself and his broom, crouching low so that it covered him completely. Hoping no one would see his feet, James slowly flew up to the girls’ dormitory, where Marlene was peacefully sleeping. 

When he got inside, James dismounted at the foot of Marlene’s bed, debating on how best to wake the sleeping girl. He knew from experience that this was a dangerous task, and he prayed that it was late enough in the day that she had had enough sleep and wouldn’t murder him. Not wanting to anger her any further, he decided against any loud noises or shaking her awake. Instead he grinned, walked over to the side of her bed, lifted up the blankets and slipped in next to her. 

‘Lily Evans if I open my eyes and you are in my bed again I swear I will shave your eyebrow off in your sleep. Notice how I only said eyebrow? Because I will leave one intact so that every time you look in the mirror you will see your one, lonesome eyebrow and remember what you lost.’

‘Well aren’t you a ray of sunshine this morning,’ quipped James. He watched in amusement as Marlene’s brow furrowed before she opened her blue eyes blearily. When he saw the be-speckled boy grinning down at her she shut her eyes again. 

‘Fuck off James. It’s too early for your shit,’ groaned Marlene, burying herself further under her blankets.

‘My my, don’t we have a dirty mouth?’ tutted James.

Marlene snorted, pulling back her blanket slightly so she could glare up at James. ‘Like you can talk. To what do I owe this completely unwelcome and unwanted visit?’ 

‘What? No – I’m gonna skin you alive for waking me up? No death threats or bodily harm?’

‘Well I would, but you clearly already know the drill, so my efforts would just be wasted on you.’

‘I only know the drill because I’ve been on the end of said threats many many times.’ 

‘Mmm,’ Marlene groaned before rolling onto her back, spitting out the honey blonde hair that had fallen into her mouth. ‘Cut the crap James, why are you in my bed? What do you want? And before you ask, I am not doing any sexual favours for you.’

‘Ah well I guess I should just go than.’ James made to move off the bed. 

‘Funny,’ said Marlene sarcastically. ‘Seriously, talk or leave so I can go back to sleep.’ She closed her eyes tiredly as he sat back down on the bed.

‘Okay, okay! I know you said no sexual favours, but what about a normal favour? Are you willing to help out your favourite marauder?’ asked James, unashamedly pouting. 

‘Depends,’ said Marlene suspiciously, cracking open a bleary eye.

‘Well see the thing is, Reilly may or may not be… unavailable to be my head honcho in Fetch, and I was just wondering if-‘

‘No.’

‘But you didn’t even hear what I was going to say!’ protested James. 

‘You were going to ask me to fill in for him, to help run your little team of spies in Fetch. And now I’m saying no because I detest the game and anything to do with it. Including you.’ She closed her eyes again, clearly finished with the conversation. 

‘Oh please,’ James scoffed, ‘you love me. But seriously Marls, I really need your help. Reilly left me high and dry and if I don’t get it sorted my team will completely crumble! I won’t have anyone to spy on the others, flush out the hiding spots or help me make kickass plans to win. Sirius will win for sure.’

‘So? Who cares? It’s just a game.’

James looked at her incredulously. ‘It’s like I don’t even know you! How can you think that this is just a game?! This is the biggest event of the year! Hogwarts looks forward to this more than Christmas! The entire school is either taking bets or playing on a team. It is life! If Sirius wins again then there will be no stopping him! Imagine the bragging. Think of the children for goodness sake!’ James had gotten so worked up in his dramatic speech that he was now sitting up on the bed, throwing his hands around passionately to demonstrate his point. 

‘Okay first of all you’re being dramatic. The entire school is not involved and they certainly do not look forward to it more than Christmas. But you do make a valid point with Sirius. No part of me wants to see that jerk win again,’ admitted Marlene reluctantly. ‘But I still won’t do it. The whole concept of it is ridiculous! You steal my friend at some ungodly hour, and hide her around the school for hours, sometimes days! Forgive me if I’m not all for it.’

‘If Lily is okay with it, why can’t you be?’

‘Because it’s stupid.’

‘That’s not a good enough reason.’

‘Well it’s the only one you’re getting, so deal with it.’ 

‘Okay, I didn’t want to have to do this Marls, but if you don’t help me out… I’ll tell Sirius what you said at the Christmas party last year.’ James didn’t care how unethical it was to blackmail his friends into helping him, so long as he could get what he wanted.

‘You wouldn’t,’ said Marlene, glaring at James. 

‘Oh contraire, I most certainly would,’ replied James, grinning cheekily. 

‘Fuck you James,’ said Marlene, sighing in defeat. ‘Alright, I’ll do it,’ she said, rolling her eyes as James whooped and punched the air. ‘But don’t think I’m happy about it. Just promise you won’t tell Sirius what I said.’ 

‘Oh don’t you worry, my lips are sealed! You’re the best Marlene, thank you, thank you, thank you!’ he said, grabbing her forehead and kissing it roughly. 

‘Ugh gross, don’t touch me.’

‘Okay, so I’m going to have to explain the game plan to you. Basically…’ Marlene groaned as James rambled on, wishing she could just go back to sleep and forget the last half an hour of the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we go! What do you think of Frank and Alice? Do you like Marlene and James friendship? Obviously this is still early days and it’s going to take a while to develop the characters, but we will get there! Also eventually this fanfic will have the primary focus of James/Lily, but I think to properly portray the era it’s going to have everyone in there.   
> Next Chapter – the game begins!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius finds a snitch and the game begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hooowdy my dearest readers. Please enjoy, and please feel free to review if you feel so inclined :P it makes me happy.  
> Diiiiisclaimer: I am not JK nor do I own anything you see or recognise. (I do however own Ralph, he’s my adorable little Ravenclaw.)

The next day, Sirius Black sat in the kitchens, surrounded by thirty odd students, the most of which were watching him in envy as he chowed down on an apple pie. He had been talking animatedly for the past ten minutes, waving his pie around theatrically on a fork whilst the house elves bustled around the kitchen.

‘…and so, as long as we stick to the plan, we should have it in the bag,’ finished Sirius, as he leaned back in his chair with a satisfied grin. ‘Any questions?’ 

A plethora of hands flew into the air, making Sirius frown. ‘You know what?’ he asked, ‘I don’t care if you have questions, this plan is foolproof. And nothing any of you can say will change my mind. I’m a genius.’

There was a loud huff from the end of the table. Sirius closed his eyes, praying silently for patience. He knew without looking who had huffed; Dorcas Meadows. The Ravenclaw head girl was known by all for being confident and stubborn. Her friends new her as kind and compassionate. Her rivals knew her as harsh and clever. Sirius Black was the latter. In fact, he wasn’t even quite sure what she was doing here, or why he even invited her. 

Sirius sighed, slowly opening his grey eyes to observe the gaggle of students in front of him, he very pointedly ignored the brown eyes of Dorcas which were boring into him from the other end of the table. ‘Right, now that that’s settled, everyone bugger off, I’ve got things to do. Oh and don’t forget to keep your armbands on so you know what’s happening,’ he said, lifting his arm slightly to emphasize the importance of the purple leather bands that the group was sporting. 

Sirius sighed and sat back in his chair as the group dispersed, many of them talking amiably about the upcoming game. It was then that he spotted the tall Ravenclaw headed towards him, making him immediately sit up straight as he prepared himself for the inevitable argument. Before Dorcas could speak however, Ralph popped up at Sirius’ elbow, bouncing up and down excitedly. 

‘Hey Sirius! How are you? You look good today, I like you’re hair like that, it makes you look like you belong in that boy band, The Nargles. You know? The ones that sing You’re a Love Potion and Baby Break My Heart. They’re so dreamy and-‘

‘Ralph! Is there something you needed or did you just want to make me wish I was bald?’ asked Sirius, mildly exasperated with the younger boy who seemed intent on making Sirius feel nauseous at the mention of the currently famous boy band. 

‘Oh, y-yes right,’ stuttered Ralph, realising he had been rambling. ‘I just wanted to give you this,’ he said, pulling a warn scroll from his bag. ‘It’s the list of hiding spots that you asked us to brainstorm a while back, I just finished writing it all up,’ his chest puffing up with pride. 

‘Brilliant,’ grinned Sirius while the younger boy beamed back. ‘Really fantastic, thank you Ralph, that’s bloody fantastic.’ He gave Ralph a hearty slap on the back as he glanced over the neatly written list.

Dorcas leaned against the wall as she watched the exchange between the two boys. She was surprised to see Sirius being so kind to Ralph, who had a tendency to annoy, something which she had been on the receiving end of numerous times in the Ravenclaw common room. Curious and eager to please, the third year often buzzed around the Ravenclaw tower asking questions and attempting to ‘help’ whoever needed. Despite his irritating friendliness, Dorcas knew that Ralph was a smart boy, perhaps smarter than most people realised.

Perhaps that’s why liked Ralph, she felt like she could relate, being constantly underestimated. Dorcas grew up shy and as a result was often pushed aside, being the tall, gangly freak that she was. It wasn’t until Dorcas grew into herself (both physically and mentally) that she started to appreciate her potential and who she was, and soon so did everyone else. 

‘Right,’ she heard Sirius say, ‘really, thank you for this Ralph, it’s going to be a great help. Now if you don’t mind I’ve got to get going.’

‘Not so fast Black,’ said Dorcas, pushing herself off the wall as she came to stand in front of them. She noticed with a twinge of pleasure that she was a few inches taller than the Gryffindor boy; she hoped he noticed too. 

‘What do you want Meadows?’ Sirius sighed. He had noticed that she was now taller than him and he was determined to not let it get to him as he stood up straighter. ‘Something got your knickers in a twist? I’m not gonna help you untie them. Ralph might though.’ 

‘What?’ squeaked Ralph, his face red and looking suitably mortified. 

‘Your plan,’ said Dorcas, ignoring Sirius’ comment and Ralph’s mumbled apologies. ‘It sucks.’

‘Oh?’ said Sirius, raising an eyebrow. ‘You’re acting like a care about what you think.’

‘You should, if you want to win.’

‘Alright, I’ll bite. What’s so bad about my plan?’ asked Sirius, his icy blue eyes sceptical as he. 

‘Dragons.’

‘Dragons?’ repeated Sirius incredulously. 

‘Yes, your plan relies largely on dragons, and in case you haven’t noticed, you don’t have a dragon,’ Dorcas spoke slowly, as if she was speaking to a small child.

‘How do you know?’ asked Sirius, crossing his arms and raising a pointed eyebrow as he leaned back on the bench behind him. 

‘What?’

‘How do you know that I don’t have a dragon hidden away somewhere?’ he asked, smirking up at the older girl. 

‘For heaven’s sake Black! If you’re going to be so blatantly stupid, I’ll go join another team!’ exclaimed Dorcas as she threw up her hands in frustration. She turned to walk to the kitchen door when Sirius called her back. 

‘Okay, okay. I do have a plan, one that doesn’t involve dragons.’ 

‘You do?’ asked Meadows, turning back to the two boys. 

‘Yep, just ask Ralph. We have a plan don’t we Ralph?’

‘Umm…’

‘Well we do, even if Ralph doesn’t remember it,’ Sirius sighed, slightly exasperated with the younger boy. 

‘Care to share?’ Dorcas moved closer, standing threateningly close. 

Sirius pretended to think about it for a few seconds. ‘Yeah no, not really.’

‘Why not? I’m on your team aren’t I?’ asked Dorcas, putting her hands on her hips defiantly. 

Sirius leaned forward and narrowed his eyes at her. ‘Yes and why is that Meadows? It’s not a secret that you don’t like me, so why now are you trying to ‘help’ me?’ he asked, suspicion coating his words like a thick honey. 

‘The lesser evil,’ she shrugged. ‘I owe James for what he did to the Ravenclaw quidditch team a few weeks ago, Peter… I don’t think he has a chance at winning, even with my help and Remus bet me five galleons that you wouldn’t win, so here I am.’

‘Hmm…’ said Sirius, studying her so intently that Dorcas started to squirm. ‘You know what I think Ralph?’ he asked, not looking away from the head girl.

‘What?’ asked Ralph warily, he was standing on the balls of his feet, watching the two of them like a tennis match.

‘I think that Meadows here might be our snitch,’ he said triumphantly. 

‘What?’ said Ralph, more confused now; the last time he had checked, Dorcas skin was chocolate coloured, not gold. Nor was she sprouting any wings.

‘She’s the double agent, the leak. I think she’s working for our dear Remus.’

‘Oh,’ said Ralph, understanding lighting his face. She was a double agent, not a glittering gold quidditch ball. 

‘I am not!’ cried Dorcas indignantly. ‘I may not love you Black, but I am loyal to the side I choose. You’re being ridiculous.’

‘No, frankly I’m just being cautious Meadows, sorry. Now,’ he said, rubbing his hands together excitedly. ‘Now that that is settled, I’ve got things to do, you know how it is, being popular and all,’ he said, completing his sentence with an absentminded wave of his hand. Now that he had realised that Dorcas was the snitch he felt at ease, safe. He knew the game plan and he knew what he had to do, he wasn’t worried that his top secret secrets would no longer be secret. He was the ultimate top secret, secret keeper.

‘Thank you for that enlightening chat Meadows, but I’d best be on my way, come along Ralph.’ Tipping an imaginary hat to Dorcas and the house elves that still bustled around the kitchen, Sirius strode towards the door. 

‘You’ll regret this Black. I’m not your snitch, but someone is giving up your game. You should have taken my offer of help, you’ll need me if you want to win,’ said Dorcas coolly. There was nothing that mad Dorcas madder than being accused of something without proper evidence, whether or not she had done it. It was just poor reasoning. Although she supposed that Sirius Black wasn’t one known for his thinking. 

Sirius paused and looked back at her, smirking slightly. ‘It would never have worked out between us, I’m sorry Meadows,’ he grinned, sending her a wink before slipping out the door, which shut with a resounding thud.

 

Lily should have been studying. Merlin knows she needed too. She had about fifty assignments to do, spells to master and facts to memorise for her upcoming O.W.LS. But instead of studying, Lily found herself out by the lake, enjoying what she was sure was her last few moments of solitude for a while. 

Lily plonked herself down in front of a small grove of trees next to the lake. It was a spot that she often took refuge in when she wanted some peace and quiet from the noisy Gryffindor common room. She hadn’t been out here in an age since winter had been so bitterly horrible, but now she relished the feel of the weak sunlight on her face and the soft grass under her fingertips. As she sat, she thought about the game. Contrary to what some people believed, she did actually enjoy the game. She found the sneaking around and learning marauder trade secrets fun, and there really was no one better to do it with then the marauders. They were clever, and daring and a little bit crazy, all of which made for a slightly terrifying, fun ride. 

Of course sometimes it wasn’t great. Like the time she and Sirius got stuck in a secret corridor for hours with no toilets. Lily blushed as she remembered how they had desperately transfigured Sirius’ hat into a bed pan and had to walk down the end of the corridor for privacy. It was perhaps one of the lowest points in Lily’s life thus far, and she and Sirius had sworn never to speak of it again or tell the others. So yeah, there had been some terrible times when she cursed the boys and their stupid, completive streaks, but overall, she loved running around with them and getting into mischief, even if it was only for a few hours (sometimes days) a year. 

As Lily reminisced about some of her past escapades with the marauders, she felt a burning pain on her wrist, comfortably hot. Her eyes flew open as she realised what it was. The rainbow coloured band on her wrist was heating up. The game had begun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooh exciting, the game has begun! Who do you think will find her first? Sorry that James and Remus are a bit MIA at the moment, actually sorry there hasn’t been much James in any of the chapters yet, but trust me, he is coming and he will be in the next chapter a lot. This is hopefully going to be a long mulit-fic so I’m just taking the time to set things up, flesh out the characters and all that jazz. Anyhooo please review because that makes me happy, feedback and critical crap also helps me because I’m still figuring this shizz out. Also sorry it’s a bit short, I’m working on that too.

**Author's Note:**

> Woohoo! You made it!


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